Dorothy Cheslock, 67, took her mother, Antoinette Vicoli, to the audiologist four years ago. They filled out the paperwork, but the doctor tried to hand it back to them because he thought they forgot to mention Vicoli’s existing conditions or medications. Cheslock noted there was no mistake, however, in spite of the medical staff’s disbelief when they saw her birthday on the forms –– June 11, 1913.

“He was like, ‘How could this be?’ because she was about 96 at the time,” Cheslock said. “She said, ‘Because I stay away from people like you.’”

For decades, Vicoli has maintained a feisty spirit and an active lifestyle while living on Little Neck Avenue in North Bellmore. Her neighbors, friends and family members came together this week to celebrate the longtime resident’s 100th birthday.

Vicoli, formerly Antoinette Ambrosiano, was born and raised in what she described as an old Italian neighborhood in the Bronx. There she met her husband, Anthony, and the pair wed on Nov. 3, 1940.

The Vicolis had three children – Loretta Welter, Cheslock and John Vicoli – before moving to what relatives and friends called the country –– Long Island. Vicoli said they packed up the children and headed east to North Bellmore, moving into a house on Hull Avenue in 1948 before purchasing the home where Vicoli now lives about 10 years later. She also later worked as a teacher’s aide at the Jerusalem Avenue School, a job that she took in the early 1960s and remained at for more than a decade.

Vicoli explained that she has stayed in North Bellmore for more than 60 years because the community has and continues to be full of generous residents. From her old friends that still live in the area to her next-door neighbor who she said always asks if she needs anything, Vicoli said the people have made the community special for years.

“I love the neighborhood and I love the people that are here,” she said. “They’re very kind and they help you in every way.”